Shostakovich: 24 Preludes and Fugues, Op. 87 (Keith...

October 18, 1992|By Alan G. Artner.

Shostakovich: 24 Preludes and Fugues, Op. 87 (Keith Jarrett, piano; ECM). Dmitri Shostakovich dedicated his Opus 87 to Tatiana Nikolaeva, who recorded the pieces three times and will play them today and next Sunday at Orchestra Hall in Chicago. Australian pianist Roger Woodward also committed the works to disc in the 1970s, but that has been it for complete recordings until this brilliant new one from Jarrett.

In general, his version is clearer, faster and more meticulous than those of the dedicatee but also more strongly related to the Bach works that gave Shostakovich inspiration, thus being less overt in feeling. At times, he finds a beatific calm in the music that eluded even the composer in his recordings of excerpts, but a choice of versions will probably be based on Jarrett`s purity of expression versus Nikolaeva`s drama.